Month: November 2017

I was thankful this month to be able to travel up to Delaware to meet my wife’s grandfather. Unfortunately, he couldn’t attend our wedding, but I enjoyed getting to meet him and see how everyone interacted with each other. I did end up using the Barclay’s Mastercard, and with Christmas approaching, I feel like I’m going to end up using the cards. If you don’t have money in savings, you may end up falling back into the cycle of charging things on credit. My advice is if you must do it then, make sure you can pay off what you charge. If you can’t then be willing to sacrifice a Christmas where you can’t buy gifts. The holidays should be about spending time together, and not about spending. If you’ve used the self-lending principle, then you’ve had the opportunity to build up your savings account at an accelerated rate.

It’s important to make small and measurable steps, and celebrate the small victories.

If you want to learn more about how I’m increasing my income, while reducing debt or if you want to have someone to discuss your debt reduction strategy with, or if you need a financial check-up, contact me.

Also, learn more about how I use the self-lending principle through Mustard Seed in the mustard seed section.

“The LORD will send rain at the proper time from his rich treasury in the heavens and will bless all the work you do. You will lend to many nations, but you will never need to borrow from them.”
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http://www.businessinsider.com/mansa-musa-the-richest-person-in-history-2016-2Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos’s net worth just crossed $100 billion, the first time in modern history that a person has been known to hold such a massive amount of wealth. But he’s still far from African King Musa Keita I, who is thought to be the richest person of all time — “richer than anyone could describe,” reports Time. Literally. His fortune was incomprehensible, Time’s Jacob Davidson writes: “There’s really no way to put an accurate number on his wealth.” He ruled the Mali Empire in the 14th century and his land was laden with lucrative natural resources, most notably gold. “His vast wealth was only one piece of his rich legacy,” reports Jessica Smith in a TED-Ed original lesson. Read on to learn more about the legendary king and see what it was really like to be the richest person in history. Musa Keita came to power in 1332. His entire empire stretched 2,000 miles. “Not one to travel on a budget, he brought a caravan stretching as far as the eye could see,” reports Smith. “Chroniclers describe an entourage of tens of thousands of soldiers, civilians and slaves, 500 heralds bearing gold staffs and dressed in fine silks, and many camels and horses bearing an abundance of gold bars.” While in Cairo, he spent so much and donated so much money to the poor that he caused a massive inflation that it took years for the city to recover from. During his lifetime, he built many libraries and mausoleums. In the end, he was mindful of his impact on history and the legacy he would leave behind.

Many of us were raised to think about a job as nothing more than a way to make money. We don’t often think of a job as a way to grow personally and professionally, but every job gives us that opportunity. Even the worst job you’ve ever had taught you something valuable! Going to work is like going to the gym. There is always a new exercise to try and new muscles to grow. You can have more fun at work, be more successful at your job and grow your confidence by using every working day and every task as a means to get stronger. The ten easy was to be better at your job are: plan ahead, create a priority map, get a journal, learn to say “I wish I could help but I can’t”, think about the future, ask for advice, respect your to-do-list but don’t make it your sole focus, sync up with your boss, take breaks, and acknowledge yourself. The order in which you do each of these 10 items isn’t important, but I’ve found that taking the time to write down your to do list at the end of the day is essential to planning. It’s important to be able to set boundaries on your workload to prevent burnout, and take the time to write out your goals. Be sure to take the time to rest, and acknowledge those moments where you can recognize the challenges you overcome. To become greater, you must be willing to step outside of your comfort zone. You are an asset to your company; how can you leverage your gifts and skills to make a difference?

This week, I’ve included Watch When You Feel Like Giving Up – NEVER GIVE IN | Motivational Video! from the Mulligan Brothers YouTube channel.

“If you think you know it all, you’re a fool for sure; real survivors learn wisdom from others.”

https://www.marketwatch.com/story/richest-men-in-history-vladimir-putin-bill-gates-and-warren-buffett-arent-even-close-2017-08-09Vladimir Putin’s wealth, even by the most generous of calculations, pales in comparison. In fact, throw in the vast riches of Microsoft MSFT, +0.18% co-founder Bill Gates, Warren Buffett of Berkshire Hathaway BRK.A, -0.21% fame and Amazon’s AMZN, +2.58% Jeff Bezos, and their combined fortune doesn’t even approach the riches of history’s wealthiest figures. Take Augustus Caesar, for example. The first Roman emperor tops the list, according to the Visual Capitalist blog. The adopted son of Julius Caesar controlled much of the world’s most powerful states — including Egypt — as part of his estimated $4.6 trillion net worth. Egypt made up at least 25% of global GDP at the time. Then there’s King Solomon, who was said to receive some $40 billion in gold each year as tribute. That helped bring his fortune to $2.2 trillion. Though it is hard to measure who the richest person in history was, because of the lack of completely accurate records. However, the article does provide a detailed chart. This calculation can change due to wealth being tied to land, and wealth could be exaggerated due to it being oral history. Nonetheless, wealth is concept that has been passed down for centuries. There are principles to building wealth that we can all apply to our daily lives. Remember to invest in assets that will produce income. Liabilities will always produce expenses. Make your money make money for you and repeat.

On Tuesday, the US Federal Communications Commission announced that it planned to vote on an order to roll back Obama-era rules governing net neutrality. Simply put, net neutrality means that all data on the internet is treated equally. An internet service provider can’t prioritize certain companies or types of data, charge users more to access certain websites and apps, or charge businesses for preferential access. Advocates of net neutrality argue that it ensures a level playing field for everyone on the internet. Telecoms firms, however, are largely against it because of the additional restrictions it places on them. But with the Republican-majority FCC likely to vote on December 14 in favor of rolling back the order, what might the American internet look like without net neutrality? Just look at Portugal. The country’s wireless carrier Meo offers a package that’s very different from the US. On top of the standard data package, users pay an additional amount based on what type of apps and the kind of data they use. Net-neutrality advocates argue that this kind of model is dangerous because it risks creating a two-tier system that harms competition — people will just use the big-name apps included in the bundles they pay for, while upstart challengers will be left out in the cold. For example: If you love watching videos, and Netflix is included in the video bundle but Hulu isn’t, you’re likely to try to save money by using only Netflix, making it harder for its competitors. And without net neutrality, big-name apps could theoretically even pay telecoms firms for preferential access, offering them money — and smaller companies just couldn’t compete with that. (It’s not clear whether any of the companies named above have paid for preferential access.) An ISP could even refuse to grant access to an app at all unless they paid up. Yonatan Zunger, a former Google employee, recently retweeted Khanna’s tweet, adding: “This isn’t even the worst part of ending net neutrality. The worst part happens when ISPs say ‘we don’t like this site’s politics,’ or ‘this site competes with us,’ and block or throttle it.” If you’re thinking about your legacy, consider it at least two to three generations deep. In other words, you’re thinking at least the next 100 years, will what you have be able to provide for that kind of future? If not, what are you teaching your children and children’s children, so they can thrive and not just survive the world to come. In my opinion, net-neutrality is important. If it is roll backed, how will this affect the cryptocurrency markets? With more and more buyers into the cryptocurrency market, will this rollback cause a price decline?

This week, I’ve included Secrets of Success – Motivational video from the Mulligan Brothers YouTube channel.

“If you think you know it all, you’re a fool for sure; real survivors learn wisdom from others.”

After years of feeling as though my finances controlled me and not the other way around, I’m happy to report I have found the solution in the wisdom of a neuroscientist. Perhaps the insight can help you, too. Budgeting is about making fewer choices to maximize happiness I first met Moran Cerf, a neuroscientist who teaches marketing at Northwestern University, over the summer. We chatted about the ways people make poor decisions and how they could make smarter ones. The conversation was so interesting that I wanted to meet again. A few months later, we convened on the second floor of a Whole Foods to delve yet again into the depths of decision-making. He brought up the topic of personal finance and how to create the perfect budget. Cerf argues that decision-making is mentally draining. Having to make several small choices can exhaust our ability to make bigger decisions. When it comes to money, Cerf says the smartest way to budget is to find the timelinethat works for you. The author would go on to create a weekly budget and that turned out to work best for him. When it comes to budgeting, find the process that will work best for you, and be sure to do it frequently. I personally will run my budget every Friday, and I’ve set it up, so I can forecast where I will be 11 months from now. I’ll also look at my budget as I feel the need to. It’s important to have a routine that you will stick to, so it becomes automatic for you. It’s about knowing how much you will have and having the freedom to decide what to do next.

With career earnings that totaled $292 million, Shaquille O’Neal currently ranks as the third-highest-paid player in NBA history. We asked Shaq what financial advice he gives young NBA players who want to hang on to their fortunes. Shaq stopped by Business Insider to talk about his collaboration with home security technology company Ring, to raise awareness about how homeowners can better protect their property this holiday season. Shaq recently kicked off a campaign with Ring’s CEO Jamie Siminoff around protecting holiday package deliveries – specifically as National Package Protection Day approaches on Nov. 29. The article has a transcript from the video. Basically, Shaq advises the athlete to cut the earning of the contract in half and save it, or if they’re more aggressive cut that in half and only spend 25%. In other words, if you have a $100 million-dollar contract, save 75% and spend the other 25% spend however you want to spend it. Most athletes that come into the League think about the money they receive now and don’t plan for the future. ESPN 30 for 30 did a great documentary called Broke which examines the spending habits of athletes. Financial education isn’t taught in schools so it’s important to find competent and wise mentors to learn from. I always tell them “Don’t think about what’s going on now. Think about what has to happen in the future.” I never spent, like, an NBA check like my first four years. Then, when I got married and had kids, all that changes, but that’s, to simplify it for them because, you know, a lot of people don’t have the business mind or the business tact, so you have to break it down in their language. So, I would say save 75%, and this 25%, do whatever you want to do with it. Take care of your family — boom, bam. House, apartment, car – but don’t ever do more than this. If you’re thinking about your legacy, consider it at least two to three generations deep. In other words, you’re thinking at least the next 100 years, will what you have be able to provide for that kind of future? If not, what are you teaching your children and children’s children, so they can thrive and not just survive the world to come.

http://www.businessinsider.com/self-made-billionaire-advice-on-making-money-2016-11Self-made billionaire Naveen Jain, who came to America from India with just $5 in his pocket, reveals his best advice on how to make billions of dollars. In this short 1:33 long video, Naveen advises you to pursue your dream even if you don’t know how to do it. Even if you experience self-doubt, he asks that you remember that every successful company has a near death experience before it becomes successful. He explains that in the end your mindset is what is important. It’s not about whether the glass is half or half empty. It’s about whether not you want to fill the glass and what do you want to fill it with. Your job is to imagine what you want it to be. The biggest problems are social problems and those are the ones with the most opportunity. He advises you to dream so big that people think you’re crazy and don’t be afraid of failure. He says if you want to be a billionaire solve a $10 billion-dollar problem. He gives some examples to consider. One thing he doesn’t say is the importance of building the right team around you, and making sure that you have systems in place to execute solving the problem. You should consider such options as how can I scale this? Can this operation remain a small one-man operation? How many people do I need to make this dream possible? How can I be efficient? How can I effectively manage the human resource? It’s a good start to have a dream, but also have vision, and be realistic too.

Let me guess the first thing you did when you opened your eyes this morning: You didn’t, by any chance, pick up your phone and start tapping away, did you? If I got that right, it’s not because I’m clairvoyant. It’s because I’ve read the research. One recent Pew survey found 80 percent of Millennials sleep with their phones. No wonder then that another poll showed 40 percent of Americans of all ages check their phones within five minutes of waking. By the time they’ve brushed their teeth, more than 80 percent of people have grabbed their gadgets. And this isn’t just the addled and unsuccessful — another survey found that half of top executives start their day with email. A vast majority of us, in other words, kick off our day by consuming and reacting to other people’s thoughts and demands. Actor and investor Ashton Kutcher, however, is in the minority. Your email, he told Arianna Huffington’s Thrive Global Podcast recently, is “everyone else’s to-do list for you.” And if you allow your inbox to set the tone for your day, you’re guaranteed to spend a huge chunk of your time on other people’s priorities. I’m guilty of checking my phone every morning when I wake up, and I agree with Ashton when he says it becomes a hole that you can’t seem to get out off, because you fill yourself up with everyone else’s wants and needs instead of taking that time for yourself. To break out of this success-killing pattern, Kutcher took action, designing a new morning ritual that allows him to work on what he actually thinks is important each day. “When I wake up … I spend the first hour of my work not looking at email, and actually just writing out what it is that I want to accomplish in a given day, and then before I go through my emails, I’ll do all my outgoing, outbound stuff, which is what I want everyone else to do for me. And then I’ll go and get reactive to whatever’s going on,” he told the podcast. Even though it’s near the end of the year, I’m going to start spending the first half hour or hour of my morning either in meditation, prayer, writing in a journal, or listening to worship music before I touch my phone. New year habits can start today, and you shouldn’t put off for tomorrow what you can do today. Several experts stress the importance of writing out your ideas in the first few minutes of the day whether it’s for productivity or creativity. I think the reason this habit works is because the words become flesh when you put pen to paper. Meanwhile, psychologist and my Inc.com colleague Benjamin P. Hardy suggests a small amount of writing not only in the morning but also before bed, to tap into your subconscious in order to answer some of your life’s trickiest and most pressing questions. “This simple routine will help you crystallize where you want to go, and how you will get there,” he says. It’s up to you to decide which form of writing appeals most to you and works best with your existing routine, but whichever you choose, it’s worth at least taking Kutcher’s idea for a spin to see if it saves you from inbox slavery and gives you more control over your day. Even if you don’t like writing, before you pick up the phone to check e-mail or social media, give this quiet time to yourself. Watch the video below:

This week, I’ve included The Power of Habit – One of the most Motivational Talks Ever from the Video Advice YouTube channel.

“If you think you know it all, you’re a fool for sure; real survivors learn wisdom from others.”